Live on £4,000 for a year - 2009, Part 4

grandma247

Thanks I will bear that in mind

FrankieM

Not had such a frugal day here, well eating wise anyway.
I'm just doing my shopping list for tomorrow. I'm planning on getting the Christmas food too as well as food to make meals for the next 2 weeks. Then I will just get any odd things I may need or run out of. DH Gran is coming next Tuesday for a week and she brings odd bits of things and cake and sometimes she has a big appetite and sometimes not so its a case of guess work.

I've been filling in cw's kindly provided spreadsheet today. I think I'm working on a 12k budget for the year but I'll working at spending as little as possible.

Has anyone made their own red wine? Is it easy? Is it cheaper? I'm currently buying boxes of wine at around £15 for 3L. It generally lasts a couple of weeks but was wondering if making our own would be cheaper again.

Savvy_sewing

Put the christmas tree up today, with DGD!. Which took ages, and was quite hard work. Its a fake tree, we bought half price last year. Complete with its lights. Its a bit big for the cottage, so Fairy is not quite on the top of the tree, but about 8" below!. The baubles were very MSE, they were donated yesterday by my BF, who was going to throw them out, as he has changed the colour of his this year!.
Havent got a high enough roof to put up the things that we had last year. Will have to just decorate the walls with a few bits and bobs. But it will have to wait until tomorrow as my arm has had enough.
Can hear a moped, so thats DS home. Finally. Not seem him properly since Thursday morning.!

lyndasharp

Not very frugal for me today either - eek to the cost of stamps! Still, Christmas cards have to be done. Budget isn't looking too bad though, and Dad will be buying the Christmas food.

TTDB, if your Argos item is available at the central Swindon store I could collect and send it to you?

Blairweech

Hi all,

Am having problems with my car at the moment. After draining the battery last week, now it won't hold a charge at all :mad:. So, have managed to sweet talk someone into giving me a lift to work tomorrow and OH is going to put a new battery in on Wednesday. So, another £50 spend that I invariably do not have. Might have to tap the emergency fund.

AND I still have not finsiehd my Xmas shopping, and don't know when I'll get chance as am on 12 hour shifts for the rest of the week now I cannot wait for the day when my life is not dictated by a job that requires 12 hours of my life a day.

As a sidenote: I would urge all of you to subscribe to the podcast of Farming Today, on Radio Four. They discuss all manner of rural issues, from serious agricultural problems e.g. the spread of African swine fever, right throught to product labelling etc. It's really interesting, and you can listen to it whilst doing other things (as it's broadcast at 05.45, which I know I wouldn't be awake for!)

Brighton_belle

lyndasharp wrote: »

Not very frugal for me today either - eek to the cost of stamps! Still, Christmas cards have to be done.

Not chez BB they don't:D. Given up the idea, other than to one elderly rellie to whom I shall write a long letter instead.
Full on lurghy leaving me feel worse every day at the mo, arggh. So nothing to report other than a very sore nose and feeling pants. Fortunately no one is relying on me to make their xmas so nil preparations to worry about. Lots of baked potatoes for dinner at the mo - seem to be craving them but a 5k bag form ^sd^ for £2 is helping that one.

cw18

I'm a bit cheesed off today..... don't seem to be having a lot of luck with ordering the special dog food on-line :mad:

When I ordered the original 2 bags I went via a cash-back site. Still waiting to see what clears as the cash-back site have told me the amount will be corrected by the company before payment is made (following my raising a report with them), but 2 months later it's still showing at less than half what it should be. And when the courier delivered it he threw it (both 14kg sacks inside one starch sack) over one of my side gates, which are over 6 foot high!! The retailer had asked (at time of ordering) for alternative delivery instructions in case no-one was in, but these weren't printed on the packaging so I assume they weren't passed on.

My latest order was with a different company, who say they 'aim' to ship the next working day on a 'next working day' delivery. Ordered Wed evening (I admit it was late on), but had hoped for Thursday shipping with Friday delivery (when DS would be home, as not a college day). But I got a despatched email on Friday, for delivery today!! They had also asked for alternative instructions for the courier, and I'd put down 3 neighbours they could leave it with. Hadn't arrived when I got back from school voluntary work, and still hadn't when I left for work (as late as I possibly could) having seen 2 of the neighbours were in. Got several minutes down the road when I looked back over my shoulder (still don't know why) in time to see the delivery van (ParcelF0rce) turn into our estate. No way I could have got back home before he left - even if it wouldn't have made me late for work - so I just spent the rest of the walk trying to figure which neighbour would get saddled with it. Got home tonight to a card saying that - as there was no reply at my house - they've delivered it to the local PO :eek:

So it looks like alternative delivery info hasn't been passed on again (why do these companies ask for it ), and I've now got to figure out how I'm going to collect 42kg of dog food in a one hour lunch break tomorrow. Won't have chance Wednesday, and reckon at best what I have left here won't last longer than that :mad: Only option appears to be taking the car to work tomorrow morning, driving to the PO as soon as I get off on my break (part way home, but on the one way system that means then doing a circuit back past work), driving home, then getting/eating lunch before heading back to work on foot. Problem is going to be getting it from the PO to the car, as the car park is across the road and I struggle to move a single sack (it has at least been sent as 3 individual packages) from the car into the house - even when I've backed up to the front door :eek: Had they taken it back to the depot I could have re-arranged delivery - and if not for tomorrow (when DS is home again) then I could have done it for Friday and the Dalmatian would just have had to have had the Yorkies food for a couple of meals until then..........

(Whoops! Sorry for the long rant, but as you can tell I'm more than a little 'peeved' over it all. If it wasn't such a huge saving - basically B2G1F - compared to buying it from the vet I'd stick to the local option!)

Other than that things aren't too bad here. Looks like hours at work are back to my normal contracted hours for a while (certainly this week, but I'm still not holding my breath on next week after seeing the extra hours showing on the rota for the bakers - which will mean much more stuff needing packing), so I really MUST start clearing out a bedroom in time for elder DS getting home on Sunday!!! (Can hardly open the door at the moment - and really only have an hour or so each evening, plus a couple of hours Thur morning, about 4 hours Fri morning, most of Saturday, and hopefully all of Sunday morning to get it something like straight for him :rolleyes2 )





:eek: :eek: at the stories about gaps between platforms and trains. Glad to hear the first didn't see any damage, and the latest was only a shoe (though I can totally sympathise with Lingo over the loss of a beloved shoe)


as for the woodland - is not jealous, is not jealous, is NOT jealous of TTDB :rotfl:


Mooloo - glad your parents felt able to help out with finances a bit. If they're anything like mine they'll see it as helping 3 generations of the family (as in you've ended up with unexpected expenses which can cause stress, your DD will probably find it easier to get your DGD back if she's with family rather than in 'official' care, and your DGD is with family instead of strangers - speaking of which, any sign of DD passing over the money she gets for DGD yet? Or anything else from SS?). Also pleased your landlord is finally getting something done to try and improve the running costs of the property for you

BW - hope the car behaves after it gets it's early Christmas present of a new battery

Nyk & Taka - fingers firmly crossed that you both manage to end the year on/under budget

tiddles

'I've now got to figure out how I'm going to collect 42kg of dog food in a one hour lunch break tomorrow.'

Cw - I have a feeling you can arrange for the parcel to be redelivered at a time that suits you - I hope so anyway!

thriftylass

Mooloo wrote: »

The baubles were very MSE, they were donated yesterday by my BF, who was going to throw them out, as he has changed the colour of his this year!.

I guess he's not doing that every year though .

I sometimes wonder if people really do change them every year. I was brought up with christmas decoration that was treated like the family silver (not that we have anything like that though ) and even passed on to the next generation. Some of my ornaments are 70 years old and I still have my first set of baubles from 7 years ago (although they were cheap ones and loose there paint now). And my parents were really proud when I asked for traditional christmas ornaments from the region in Germany I'm from, again a bit pricey but meant for live.

see you later

P.S. Nearly forgot. Had a lucky escape with credit card fraud (First time so still a bit of a shock). My company rang me yesterday with four unusual activities on my card (well two were actulally mine) and another two from some phone company. It was only £4 and £1 but I guess if they do that to thousands on a regular basis hoping they don't notice or dismiss it. So had my card cancelled. Now I just wonder how it happened because on most sites I protected through additional security measures from R3S .

BigMummaF

grandma247 wrote: »

http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2009/mar/30/peter-preston-food-vat
Interesting article

There was something similar on..probably breakfast news again ..& things like this makes me so :mad: It's not bad enough that skinny joes feel they have the right to sit in blanket judgement & tell folk "Eat less & you'll loose weight--it's not rocket science!" that now the bods are looking to make a quick buck out of it too. WHY can't they make healthier food CHEAPER, rather than putting a tax on other stuff For my family, counting calories comes way down the list of priorities after 1) saving the pennies 2) checking salt levels 3)sugar, & for others 4)E-numbers on the few pre-packs I may buy. It so annoys me that people class over-weight with an addiction similar to alcohol for example, when the truth of the matter is you cannot avoid food! You don't need to drink booze, take illegal substances or gamble to survive but you do have to eat!
If I were unfortunately to suffer from anorexia etc I'd get help from all manner of places, but as it is I get dismissed as a glutton. No account is made of my genetic history which truly baffles me; I have my dad's wavy hair & mum's eye colour so why should I be a size 12 when none of my family were?
Sorry. but I hate the attitude towards folk who are deemed to be outside the considered "norm" for any reason.

thriftylass wrote: »

....
I sometimes wonder if people really do change them every year. I was brought up with christmas decoration that was treated like the family silver (not that we have anything like that though ) ....

P.S. Nearly forgot. Had a lucky escape with credit card fraud (First time so still a bit of a shock). My company rang me yesterday with four unusual activities on my card (well two were actulally mine) and another two from some phone company. It was only £4 and £1 but I guess if they do that to thousands on a regular basis hoping they don't notice or dismiss it. So had my card cancelled. Now I just wonder how it happened because on most sites I protected through additional security measures from R3S .

I've often wondered why people have to follow a trend--:rolleyes: don't think I've ever followed a fashion thus far in my life for anything :rotfl:And like you, I do enjoy seeing the 'treasures' have survived another year in the attic
That's scary about your card _pale_ Doesn't matter how much it was for, it's still not nice knowing someone had access to YOUR money. I've not heard of R3S so would you mind explaining please? I'm a bit of a numpty where IT is concerned so I want to protect myself as much as is possible. TIA